TOM GRANOFF
Scope: multivariate statistics, behavioral sciences, data processing, marketing research, forensic psychology, research design, SPSS, SAS, survey research, medical research, web-based surveys, quantitative methods, focus groups, interviewing techniques, qualitative methods, correlational analysis, research methodologist, ANOVA, MANOVA, logistic regression, multiple regression, discriminant function analysis, factor analysis, Method's Chapter editing, Final Oral examination preparation.
TOM GRANOFF, Ph.D., has spent over 25 years designing surveys, analyzing data using SPSS or SAS and writing the results chapter for hundreds of theses and dissertations in most of the behavioral sciences. Tom often edits the Methods Chapter to ensure the research questions hypotheses, data gathered and the statistical analysis approach are all in agreement. He worked on over 100 separate projects in the past 12 months. Frequent majors Tom works with include Psychology, Counseling, Education, Public Health, Leadership, Business, Marketing, Sociology, Management, and Nursing. He also worked for many years in marketing research and data processing positions in the health care industry. A popular instructor, Dr. Granoff teaches graduate level research methods and statistics courses at Loyola Marymount University and Pepperdine University, both in Los Angeles. He prides himself in being able to explain most multivariate statistical tests in simple English without using math. Clients also frequently ask Tom to help them prepare for their final orals. His formal education includes a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology plus Master's degrees in Theology and Industrial/Organizational Psychology.
FEEDBACK (additional feedback)
"His consulting made the difference in knowing 'what I had' and 'what I really had' (statistically). Yes, I graduated with honors and completed my life long goal and became Dr. Bob. Thank you Tom for what you did for me." Bob
"I am so impressed by Dr. Granoff's kindness and professionalism. He was a joy to work with. Not only was he patient with me (a much needed quality when doing statistics!) but also he was always timely and consistent in returning the work. He has the highest ethical standards of anyone I have worked with. I would not have made it through without him" Dr. Michelle
"Tom is a lifesaver. With his help I was able to surmount dissertation deadlines I never thought possible. He went above and beyond the call of duty, all the while infusing our interactions with humor and a much needed stance of crisis management. I can't even begin to convey my gratitude for his outstanding work. The bottom line is I HIGHLY recommend his service, for he gets the job done!" Rebecca
"Tom, I wish my professors throughout my Master's course were as clear as you in explaining statistics. I had all this data in front of me and wasn't sure what to do with it. Your patience and clarity in assisting me with what tests to utilize, how to analyze the results and how to present my findings were invaluable. Even though I live across the country from you, you were accommodating to my schedule, always on time, and enthusiastic. In short, you translated in perfect English this foreign language otherwise knows as Stats. Expect to hear from me soon... I am on the path to my Doctorate." Noel
"My experience with Dr. Granoff was great. Although we were on opposite coasts, our communication was excellent. We used e-mail, telephone appointments fax and Fed Ex. He gathered information, conducted the analysis and then spent time discussing the data analysis section. I highly recommend his services." Terry
"Tom Granoff’s performance and contribution to my research has been critically important and essential to the completion of my dissertation. He has helped give my research focus and form. The skill level that he possesses is of the highest caliber. I was stalled and intimidated by the magnitude of the numbers, he got me back on track and ultimately successful completing my research and dissertation. He would take all calls and emails with seriousness and speed. Often we would conduct weekly phone calls to discuss and review progress. He arranged and coordinated additional resources to execute a web based questionnaire. He was never shy of reluctant to rewrite, change, or modify anything if it leads to better results. He also worked fast and efficient which helped keep the cost down. I can, and do recommend with the highest degree of conviction, Tom to anyone needing help with the statistical analysis and methodology. I am so satisfied with his work and investment into the project that I intend to use Tom other business based projects in the future." Randy
Preparing for Your Oral Defense
By
Tom Granoff
Examples of Common Questions
1. If you had five years and $5 million, how would you improve this project? In other words, what are the methodological limitations in this study and how would you correct them given basically unlimited time and money?
2. It's important that you are able to explain the meaning of every number and word and statistical test in your Results Chapter tables and narrative. Also, be able to find those numbers easily on your statistical software printout should a question be asked.
3. Please discuss the findings and implications of this study in light of the training that you received in other courses in your major.
4. What did you like best and least about this study?
5. What did you learn from this project?
6. How would you interpret these findings in light of the _______ Theory of ________? In other words, be able to interpret your findings based on any of the authors that you mentioned in your Literature Review.
7. Please discuss how your findings fit or don't fit with your theoretical framework.
8. What government policy recommendations might you make?
9. What recommendations and implications are there for practitioners in your discipline?
10. What recommendations do you have for future research?
11. What questions do you have for the committee? (Know the content expertise for committee members and be ready to ask them for their opinion about the findings in light of that expertise. However, always remember to ask a question that they can answer easily so they will shine and sound brilliant in front of their peers!).
12. Who are some of the major writers in your field who would agree or disagree with your conclusions/recommendations?
13. Are there any closing comments you would like to make? (Mention how much you learned and find at least one or two things to thank each committee member about).
Other Helpful Preparation Tips
1. If possible, attend a few Final Orals presentations before your own to get a feel for the process. It's even better if the candidate you watch has the same advisor as you.
2. Ask your advisor about the format of the Final Orals Defense. Often the candidate presents their findings for about 30-minutes and then the committee asks questions.
3. Ask your advisor if there are any special arrangements or formats or traditions that they or your department likes to follow in setting up the presentation. Often, your department has already prepared a checklist or list of helpful suggestions.
4. Ask your advisor if you need to make a formal PowerPoint presentation or would they be happy if you merely distributed paper copies of the presentation.
5. If not given a presentation format, consider this simple 30-minute approach: spend five minutes summarizing each of the first three chapters: Introduction, Literature Review and Methods. Spend the remaining time presenting your findings in this format: state your research question/hypothesis, what you found and then what you conclude/recommend.
6. Often, the candidate presents their study and then the advisor asks the first few questions. Ask your advisor in advance what their first few questions will be so that you can prepare good answers and then have more confidence with the other questions.
7. Contact each committee member before the Final Orals and ask them for the types of questions that they or other committee members are typically going to ask.
8. If possible, practice your presentation enough times (maybe even 5-10 times) so you feel confident with your material. Ask friends to watch you practice and give feedback.
9. Realize that it's okay to say, "You know, that's a great question! I haven't thought about that. Would anyone else like to address that question? (Of course, don't use that response too often!). Expect a few questions that you won't be able to answer.
10. Find out what the "pass-rate" is at your school. At most schools, the pass-rate is 100% because your committee won't let you schedule the Defense until your dissertation is good enough. What often happens is that the committee gives you a passing grade but asks that your advisor work with you on a set of revisions. If that happens, consider your Final Orals to be a success. An old adage from airplane pilots fits here: "any landing that you can walk away from is a good landing! Your Final Orals doesn't have to be perfect; it only needs to be good enough for you to pass and then eventually graduate.
11. Determine the overall tone of the Final Orals Defense in your department. In many schools, family members attend and the tone is celebratory in nature. In other departments, the Final Orals is an actual exam and the tone can be adversarial. It's good to know this before you get there and prepare accordingly.
12. Remember to get enough sleep and exercise in the weeks leading up to the Defense.
13. Realize that you know your specific study better than any of your committee members. That is a clear advantage for you during the question and answer section.
14. Realize that, in most cases, your committee wants you to do well because a failure at the Final Orals Defense reflects poorly on their ability to mentor students.
MYTHS AND TRUTHS ABOUT ACADEMIC RESEARCH PROJECTS
By
Tom Granoff, Ph.D.
Myth #1: Your research project has to be brilliant, truly impress the committee and be published in a prestigious research journal.
Truth #1: The research project only has to be good enough to be accepted so you can graduate. Any additional effort to improve it beyond that bare minimum has to be carefully considered against all other competing life responsibilities such as family, career and health. More is not necessarily better!
Myth #2: You have never done anything like this before.
Truth #2: All that a thesis or dissertation really is can be described as "a fancy term paper that includes some original data. Most graduate students have successfully written dozens of term papers since high school. Therefore, most know more about what it takes to get the project done than they realize. Some have found it helpful to refer to their project as "my fancy term paper"to remind them of their writing experience.
Myth #3: You have to do all the work yourself.
Truth #3: It is often helpful to delegate portions of the project to others to utilize their expertise and to speed up the time to completion. This could include portions of the typing, the statistical analyses, gathering the data, etc. Some projects are done in student teams or other times people hire professionals to help. If you look at your professor's projects, seldom do they work alone and often their grants include money for consultants. Other people find it helpful to delegate or hire someone to handle other life tasks such as childcare, gardening, tax preparation, shopping or other misc. errands to free up more time to work on their project. Unfortunately, some people think that they are "saving money"when they do it all themselves but often they really end up paying more money in the form of extra tuition or lost future income because their project drags on.
Myth #4: All of my committee members carefully read and remember every word that I send to them plus any of the related discussions.
Truth #4: Except for the committee chairperson, most actually don't read every word and some chairs don't either! A good strategy is to send the first few drafts of each chapter to your committee in bullet-point form for their feedback. Most committee members will read and provide detailed feedback if given three pages of bullet-points. However, many are not likely to read carefully a 30-page chapter and give a thoughtful critique. In addition, a few drafts in bullet-point form increases their comfort level with your project so they tend to ask fewer dumb or surprise questions at the Final Orals.
Myth #5: Every draft to my committee must be flawless.
Truth #5: Not true! One of the key differences between a term paper and a thesis or dissertation is that with a term paper you only get one submission to get your grade. It's different with a thesis or dissertation because it's created in multiple drafts. Many students slow down their project unnecessarily by spending too much time polishing their initial rough drafts.
Myth #6: My research project must make an original contribution to the literature of my discipline.
Truth #6: Most graduate research projects are repeats of other studies and not later published. Most graduate students (and faculty members for that matter) do not have the ability, funding, or resources available to them to make a truly original contribution. The true goal of a thesis or dissertation at most universities is to teach graduate students the research process so they can better understand journal articles and the scientific method.
Myth #7: My paper must be long to be accepted.
Truth #7: Not necessarily true. While some schools do require a certain number of pages, length is generally not a key factor. Remember that most of the seminal journal articles in your discipline are under twenty pages in length.
Myth #8: Qualitative research projects are easier to complete than quantitative ones.
Truth #8: This is also not necessarily true. In qualitative analysis, there really is no limit to the amount of thematic analysis one can do so it becomes difficult to know when you have done enough work. Students are still writing dissertations on the works of Shakespeare and he hasn't written anything new for quite awhile! With a quantitative study, there generally are specific hypotheses to test with clear criteria for acceptance or rejection. Once the hypotheses are tested, you can write your conclusions and be done.
Myth #9: It always better to pick a topic that you are passionately interested in when deciding what to write about.
Truth #9: There is actually some truth to this myth but what often happens is that the project suffers from "the curse of an interesting topic."This means that the student makes the project much too large because they can't decide what to exclude because "it's all so interesting. It's generally better to find a moderately interesting topic with readily available data to get the project done.
Myth #10: My first proposal to my committee must include everything I plan to do.
Truth #10: Writing the proposal is in many ways a negotiation with your committee. If it were a money negotiation, one would begin by saying "it costs $1 million"while the other person initially offers to pay about $1.00 for it. After a few rounds, the parties hopefully come up with a price both can live with. In the same way with a proposal, make the first offer to be simple and then add to it only after the committee wants more. Some graduate students have offered simple initial proposals, had the project accepted unchanged by the committee and this saved the student countless hours in the process.
